A Year's Wait
by kawaiichiisaikitsune
Summary: [COMPLETED][LeexGaara]Lee stays in touch with Gaara by letters. But the Kazekage never replies.
1. Chapter 1

**A Year's Wait**

**kawaiichiisaikitsune(blackharu2)**

**Disclaimer - **No, I don't TTTT

**A/N - **Hope you like it. Hope they aren't OOC. And hope you like it!

**Special Thanks - **To...uh...whoever reviews!

**Word Count - **974 words

Lee was persistent. He was determined and hard-working. Even if he was put down or ignored, he would never give up. A lot of people liked him for that too. The only fault of that was that when he had his eyes set on something he wouldn't stop until he got to an outcome he wanted. That was what made him annoying.

It'd been a year since his first chounin exam and happily Lee was now at that level, after the second time. He was much more masculine and very handsome. He bushy eyebrows were a bit of a turn off, but his body made a couple of girls blush (including Tenten). Lee was joyful about his new rank and newfound popularity. He had been rid of the jumpsuit and only wore it when he was training alone. His "undying love" for Sakura had taken a high I've off a 500-foot cliff.

The bubblegum haired kunoichi was the "hottest" girl in the village. Many boys were chasing after her, even some girls, but she still kept she heart full set on Sasuke, awaiting his return. Naruto tried comforting her. However, she just pushed him away and attempts to never speak with him.

Still, Lee found his life completely enjoyable and wouldn't want it any other way. Except he would like to see his _special someone_ more often. His want to being friends with that person soon grew into a disease of love and lust. The two were good friends and not wanting to jeopardize that Lee didn't speak anything of his feelings.

The two only got to see each other when a visit was arranged at either of their villages. The ebony-haired shinobi contacted the other through letters. More than 20 letters had been sent to the person, but only two and a half replies were received. Two and a half because one of the replies had been ripped in half, jaggedly.

After that many letters his friends told him to give up. They didn't know of his harbored feelings, but they wouldn't let him continue "being a fool." He was just about to give up on the whole idea when he remembered what he promised to himself. _I will never give up!_ He had vowed when he was younger. The promise was only for fights and matches when he first vowed, but it really went for everything as he thought about it.

Deciding a walk would help him decide what to say in his latest letter, he left the house clothed in his shinobi outfit. He noticed a familiar face under an oak tree. Walking closer to the figure, he smiled widely. Enveloped in the shade of the tree was Tenten, sitting down with her back against the hard bark. Her eyes were closed and her breathing was long and deep, but not even.

Lee took a seat next to the Weapons' Mistress and pulled his legs to his chest. His arms hugged the living daylights out of his shins as the side of his head lay on top of his knees. He was staring intently into her brown orbs and smiled softly, more sorrow than happiness in it.

"What is it?" she asked concerned, turning to face him.

"He never replies," he only felt comfortable pouring out his feelings to his female partner. Only she knew of his incurable disease of want.

"He's probably just busy. He is the Kazekage you know," she smiled with a motherly nature and took one of his hands in hers.

"Yeah, but--" he argued, but was interrupted.

"No buts. I'm sure he'd love to talk to you. He's probably fixing up a surprise. It is your birthday tomorrow."

"I wouldn't be shocked if he forgot," he said with a childish pout.

"He wouldn't do that, you two are buddies," her hands were cupping his one hand and desperately trying to make him smile, like he normally does.

"I doubt it."

An exasperated sigh left her lips, "Stop, really. You're acting like a child." She watched as his finger nails dug into his shin, he teeth were grinding and a trickle of blood rolled down from the side of his mouth.

"I can't help it. It hurts."

"Yeah, I know. I've heard it from you a million times. Just call him or something."

"What am I supposed to say?"

"The truth," she smirked to herself.

"Okay," he complied, standing up. The ebony-haired male outstretched his hand for her. She took it willingly and he pulled her to her feet. Tenten bid him farewell as she would be going in the opposite direction of him. As she left an arm waved to her back high in the air.

"Lee," said boy whipped around, the voice was familiar. He instantly saw the red hair and the kanji "ai" on his forehead. A smile situated on his face.

"Gaara!" he chirped happily, having to hold back the will to glomp the shorter teen.

"Tenten told me," the redhead sighed softly, his voice staying in monotone.

Lee looked really confused and blinked rapidly, cutely, "Told you what?"

"Told me..._that,_" the Shukaku vessel pointed to the teller shinobi's chest, where the heart should be. A crimson cloud hung over the ebony-haired boy's cheeks.

"Ano...?" he drawled, not voicing his question.

"Happy Birthday," Gaara said, quickly changing the uncomfortable subject.

"My birthday isn't until tomorrow," Lee pointed out, cocking his head to the side in question.

"Hn.."

"Gaara?"

"Aa?" said person stated nodding for him to continue.

"Do you...feel...the same?" Lee asked, bowing down his head in embarrassment.

"Aa," he answered quietly, his tone one of caring. This time the taller teen didn't hold back. Lee glomped the redhead with a smile plastered on his face. Gaara blushed at the contact and the ebony-haired boy got a few new cuts from the sand.

**A/N - **Thank you for reading! Tell me what you thought! Please review... Thank you! ((Flames will do no good))


	2. Chapter 2

**A Year's Wait**

**blackharu**

_Do not own..._

**Chapter 2 - Visiting Questions**

"So, did you only come because of whatever Tenten said?" Lee asked, walking on the roads of Konoha with the redhead.

"No, I need to give Tsunade-san something," he answered seriously.

"What?" he questioned, eyes growing in size with curiousity.

"Classified."

"Oh, okay... Well... When are you leaving?"

"Tonight."

Lee saddened at this response. "Is that why you said 'Happy Birthday' to me already?"

"Yes," Gaara nodded.

"You're not even staying? I was planning on having a birthday party!"

"I can't."

"Please?" he pleaded, making large puppy-dog eyes.

"I can't," he repeated, slightly agitated.

"Okay, well I better go anyways. It was nice seeing you," the taijutsu master said, running off while waving.

"You too," the redhead simply replied, a frown forming at his mouth. He watched the taller teen run away and continued walking toward the Hokage's building. A brunette soon jogged up to him and gave a small huff. Her hands were situated on her hips and a mad face graced her features.

"How could you, Gaara-san? You can't even stay for Lee's brithday?" she shouted increduously.

"No," he replied dully, walking past her, not even giving her a glance, . She turned around and fisted her hands by her sides, steam practically rising from her head.

"You don't care! He was so upset when you didn't reply to his letters! The least you could do is show up at his birthday party!" she yelled, running up to him.

"No."

"If you're worried about a present, then-"

"Tenten, I said 'no'!" he snapped, thoroughly annoyed.

"I don't know what he sees in you!" she hissed coldly, stomping off..

The sentence continued to ring in his head. A chant that repeated itself over and over, as if taunting him. He growled at the already gone shinobi, cursing her for the statement. His legs paused their strides, thinking over the cold phrase. _What _does_ he see in me,_ he wondered, looking up to the sky for answers. It was as if the cloudy space knew his problems and what to reply, for it started a light drizzle of clear liquid. He cursed softly to himself then walked for safety, in no hurry whatsoever.

He took shelter in a rather large store, the heated air almost suffocating. He looked around the store, twitching as he realized what kinda of store it was. Many women with swelled stomachs walked around with either a bored husband or a small child. He mentally blanched at being stuck in a maternity store, but decided it was better than the storm... Or was it?

It wasn't..

Gaara quickly got out of the feminine building and walked through the hard rainfall. The falling water made his red hair stick unwillingly to his face, framing his features beautifully. His bright turquoise eyes looked dazed as his mind drifted into other subjects. He wondered if Lee was caught in the storm and whether or not the chounin took shelter.

_I don't know what he sees in you!_ The brunette's voice swarmed his head again. He closed his eyes and a sigh of defeat escaped his lips. When he opened his eyes again he had luckily found himself in front of the Hokage's office building. He entered the red structure and walked up to a yound lady with a pig.

"Shizula-san, you wanna hang out sometime?" a man standing next to her asked, obviously drunk.

She visibly blanched, "No, and that's not my name Jiraiya-sama." Gaara's eyes slightly widened at that man being one of the famous legendary senin. They weren't famous in the Suna, but since his father was Kazkage, he knew other important shinobi. Also, from that Lee would write about Jiraiya, saying how he was Naruto's other teacher.

"Shizuru? Am I correct?" Gaara started, coming up to stand by her. "Is Tsunade-san in?" She glared at the young leader, for her name once again said wrong.

"Yes, Gaara-sama, Tsunade-sama is upstairs." She refused to give her name unless he actually asked, which she figured he wouldn't. She was right and sighed dejectedly, as he walked away from her, heading upstairs as he was told.

The Kazekage took even steps up the many stairs, a bored look plastered on his face. Eventually, he made it to the top of the staircase and straightened his posture for any slumping of his shoulders. He heard a few pops from his upper torso but ignored the loud noise.

He walked through the corridor, looking at each door for it to signalize it was the Hokage's office. Soon he came to a door that had a plaque with the words _"Hokage's Office"_ on it. He knocked on the door and waited for any response. After hearing a groggy "come in", he opened the oak piece and stepped into the spacious room.

"Tsunade-san, I am to give you this," he spoke seriously, handing a scroll over to Konoha's leader. He turned to leave when he was stopped by the female behind him.

"So, what did you get Lee?"

He whipped around and glared at the Godaime.

"What do you mean?" he asked patiently, hoping she was talking about something different than tomorrow.

"His birthday is tomorrow and I figured you got him something," she answered simply, wiping off some drool she found on her face.

"I'm not stayng and I got him nothing."

"You're _not_ staying? And why not?"

"I need to go back to Sunagakure."

"You can go back tomorrow afternoon. I'm sure no one would mind." He glared, he was annoyed. Gaara had no clue why he had to stay in Konoha for Lee's birthday. He wouldn't mind staying, he actually wanted to, but he needed to get back home. Giving the scroll to the Hokage was a request that his elders had planned to give to his group leader (a/n-whose name I don't know). He had stolen the job because he knew the next day was Lee's birthdate. He couldn't stay, even though he _was_ Kazekage. His elders stilled outruled him in every category and he was told to be back immediately.

"They would. It's my duty to be back on time," he graced her with the closest thing to a full explanation. She huffed at him, crossing her arms over her overly-large chest.

"Let me talk with them," she said before picking up the phone on her desk. She dialed the familiar number and a male's voice picked up.

_"Moshi moshi?" _he asked.

"Yes, this is Tsunade of Konoha," she began, sending a wink over to Gaara, "would you mind if we borrowed Gaara for a day?"

_"What for?"_

"One of his close friends is having a birthday party."

_"Gaara has no friends, he has told us as such. We will not allow him to be at your village for much longer without any subordinates. Make sure to send him back unharmed. It was nice talking to you, Tsunade-san," _the male replied before disconnecting the line. She slammed the phone down and glared coldly at the inanimate object.

"That bastard!" she cursed, clenching and unclenching her hands in aggravation. After she cooled off some she turned to the redhead, "Sorry you have to go...soon."

"Hn," he sighed mentally, heading out of the room. He heard a few statements thrown his way, but he ignored them and continued to exit the building. His normally stoic composure had turned to that of a bored one, even his tone of voice was bored (if he was to say a word). Just as he made it to ground level, a male entered the building with a green umbrella.

"Shizune-san!" he said cheerfully. "How are you? Has Gaara already left?" The redhead raised an invisible eyebrow at the questioning of himself. A small smile tugged at his lips when he finally recognized the shinobi.

"Lee-san, I'm doing okay. How about you?" she answered kindly, still carrying the pig. "He hasn't. He's still with Tsunade-sama..." The kunoichi started, looking around the room. She spotted him at the foot of the staircase and smiled politely. "He's right there," she said, pointing in his direction. The taijutsu master rotated to look at the spot which was motioned to and smiled widely at finding Gaara standing there. The Kazekage had his arms crossed over his chest and a small smile curved at his lips.

"Gaara, c'mon!" he chirped.

"To where?"

"There's a big thunderstorm outside and you don't have an umbrella! Don't you have to be home soon? I'll walk you!"

"My home is far away, Lee," he said with a slight small at the childish boy's words.

"That's why we have to hurry!" he stated before grabbing the redhead's hand and pulling him outside. Once outside, under the shelter of the veranda, he opened the green umbrella and got underneath it, making Gaara squish in too. He started walking, the redhead having to follow if he wanted to be under the comfort of the green object.

"Lee, it's okay. I'll be fine," Gaara tried to reason, pondering on why the leaf-nin was doing this.

"I know you will, but since you can't stay until tomorrow. I just want to walk you home," he answered with a tint of sorrow. The two walked in silence, but not an uncomfortable silence. Neither looked at each other nor spoke a single word or sound.

Eventually the duo made it to the Suna (Lee ending up complaining about how much his feet hurt). The two stood on the doorstep of Gaara's house, looking at each other.

"What do you want for your birthday?" Gaara finally questioned.

"Um... Anything, I guess," he shrugged. He watched as the redhead seemed to close in. Being the person that he is--meaning how he swooned over who he liked--he prepared himself for what he thought was coming next. He slipped his eyelids down and pushed out his lips. He felt a hand rummage through his hair and waited patiently for the kiss. When nothing happened, Lee opened his eyes to be greeted with a confused look on Gaara's part.

"Gaara, I thought.." Lee blushed at his thoughts and a hand lifted to scratch nervously at the back of his neck.

"Kisses are overrated," he said dully.

"Gaara..."

"What Lee?" he asked to his name being called. He had just opened the door and was planning on going in.

"If you could stay for my party, what would you get me?" Lee questioned, giddy.

"Nothing."

"Nothing?" he repeated, hopes crushed, and here he thought Gaara _liked_ him!

"I'm not good with gifts."

"So? You could get me anything!"

"I don't know. I'd get you nothing."

"Not even a card?" The redhead shook his head, indicating he wouldn't get _or_ make a card.

"Absolutely nothing?" he repeated again, still uncertain He was about to go insane.

"Lee, what does it matter?"

"I just thought you'd might've gotten me something," he answered, his voice portraying his sorrow.

"Well, you were wrong," the taijutsu master waited for any romantic like _"I wouldn't just get you _some_thing I would get you_ any_thing"_ or something like that. When he got no such comment he sighed, clearly unhappy, and just as Gaara was going to ask what was wrong, the door opened.

"Gaara, home already?" a blonde asked, stepping outside. "Oh, hi Lee!" she said once she noticed him.

"Hello, Temari!" he greeted with feign joy.

"So, tomorrow's the big day?" she replied as more of a statement than question. The sentence brought small bloches of red on the shortest's cheeks. Lee looked quizzical and utterly confused.

"What do you mean?"

"Tomorrow's your birthday. Gaara's been mumbling about it for a while now," she responded, smirking at the reaction she got from her brother. "Oh sorry, ototo, I didn't know it was a secret," she let out a smile and sent a wink towards the leaf-nin.

"Gaara's been talking about it?" he repeated, slowly. He jumped to the blonde, taking her hands in his. "Did he tell you what he was going to get me? He keeps telling me he would get me 'nothing'!"

"'Nothing', eh?" she questioned. "That's not what I heard." She pretended to be pondering deeply. "Whoops. Did I say that out loud?" she teased her brother.

"I said the same thing to you, Temari," he reasoned, glaring at her harshly.

"Well, whatever you said, why don't you two come in? Or do you have to go back, Lee?"

"I don't _have_ to go, but I shouldn't stay too long."

"How about you spend the night over here and you'll be home early in the morning?" she suggested. Then she turned her head to the side. "Seeing as ototo doesn't sleep." Gaara mumbled.

"I couldn't," he replied, raising his hands in defense, yet still holding onto the umbrella.

"Oh come on, you'll be back in time for your party, and I'm sure you wanted Gaara to come," a nod, "and this is pretty much the same thing," she finished. Lee gave up and let himself be pulled into the large house, a secret smile gracing his lips.

"I should call Gai-sensei to tell him where I am," he stated.

"He won't mind, you'll be fine," Temari replied, yanking on the stiff Lee. She got him the sit down, along with her brother, and stood in front of them. "You guys want anything? Food? Drink?" When she only received a few shakes from their heads, she sighed. Temari turned on the television and walked out of the room, preparing her plan.

Her brother was stubborn, and scary, and Lee was an idiot with odd tastes. Even though she didn't quite believe in same-gender relationships, this was her brother and she cared. No matter what anyone said, she cared and would do anything for him. So if the two "love birds" couldn't help themselves, she would have to set them straight!

----------------------------

Next Chapter - Temari becomes matchmaker and Gaara and Lee have trouble on deciding what to do...

**LOOKIE HERE!**

**Please give me any ideas for how they spend the night, no matter how overused they are! I just don't want it to end up like my other fic... So please, ideas would be appreciated! Thankies!**

**----------------------------**

**1 - I believe her name is Shizune and whenever I ask someone her name they never know. So I thought I'd make a small joke on that... Sometimes I would call her "Shizuru" and I thought "Shizula" was kinda funny, heh heh.. Anyways, if I was wrong about her name bein' Shizune please tell me so I can fix that immediately!**

**2 - I thought that since they call Tsunade "Tsunade-sama" or "Hokage-sama" that they'd call a neighboring village's leader "-sama". If they wouldn't do that, maybe because it's not any of their business or whatever, would you tell me. I might be wrong and I don't want people to think that's what actually would happen, if it wouldn't.**

**3 - Godaime means something along the lines of 5th ruler or 5th leader, something like that. "go" means "five" and I'm too lazy to find out what exactly "daime" means. But it does mean something like leader or ruler... Just so ya know :)**

**4 - ototo means "little brother". I have seen various ways to spell this word, that being "ototo", "otouto", etc., etc. But the meaning does not differ. It still is equivalent to "little brother" in the English language.**

**--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------**

**A/N - I hope you liekd this chapter, this story is becoming a chapter story and I hope it's enjoyable! Please review to tell me what you think!**


	3. Chapter 3

**Title: **A Year's Wait  
**Author: **Dana-chan  
**Information: **Anime - Naruto - LeeXGaara  
**Chapter: **Third

**Author's Note**: I'm not going to use the same summary I wrote in chapter two, my apologies. Instead, I'm going to come back to this story after being away from it a long time, and clear some things out in this next chapter, hopefully. I'm going to try to conclude this story in the next one or two chapters, hopefully. So, if there is anything you'd like to see happen, tell me, and I'll do my best to find a way to squeeze it in.

**Thanks** to Koneko. Your suggestions are the outline of this chapter. Thanks again!

Here it is:

Hours later, Temari decided her earlier plans of setting them up would have to be a madman's thought. Obviously, these two were going to have to do all that junk on their own, because honestly, the blonde just couldn't find a way to play matchmaker without being killed in the process. As much as she loved her brother and all, she valued her life greatly.

"I'm going to bed," she called out to the two, the clock's hands both residing upon the twelve. "Gaara, make sure Lee-kun goes home early enough," she continued, walking away from the living room in which they were settled, and onto the hallway, where she would soon find her room off to the side. Kankurou had come home a while ago and instantly went to bed, seeing Lee there.

"Thank you, Temari!" Lee bellowed out to her, quickly glancing to the redhead. After he was certain she was out of ear-shot, he turned fully to the boy and smiled cheekily, "What do you want to do now?"

Outside, the rain splattered upon the ground. Little droplets managed their way onto the windows and created a unique design on the glass. The sandy ground turned to a dark brown, appearing like mud, but not quite as liquid-like. The skies were grey and fierce, dark clouds hanging close to the earth and the heavens giving off strikes of electrocution. The thundering sounds were carried in the harsh winds all across town and sounded like deep screams of the forgotten.

Gaara stood up, eyes looking out the window, mind picking up the image, but not taking it in. He started when the other spoke to him, and replied with eye contact, "I don't really care. Whatever you would like to do."

For a moment, the green beast of Konoha seemed to be thinking rather hard. Not too long later, however, he brought back his smile full power, and choose upon what he was going to do this dreary evening. "Alright then, Gaara... I'm going to ask you a few questions.." When the redhead did not reply, he took that as the okay to go ahead and request the answer to his thoughts.

"Why did you send me a ripped letter? I mean, it's perfectly fine and all... But, why only half of a note?"

The soon-to-be Kazekage appeared to turn away more, as if he were hiding something from the taller boy. However, his voice gave off no such sign, "I had written something on the bottom half. I didn't want you to read it, but I didn't want to re-write the letter, so I just ripped that part off," he explained smoothly.

"Oh... Well, that makes sense then." In some odd way, Lee wanted a little more of a fun-filled event to have become of that situation. Like, Temari had grabbed his note, and in his haste, he desperately tried to gain the letter back, but was only granted half. Oh well, Lee figured, the truth isn't always as fun as the imaginary.

Silence slowly overcame the room, Lee thinking of another question to throw at Gaara, and the latter staring longingly out the window. The instant Lee thought of a question, though, he span to the redhead and said, "What was the biggest event in your childhood. Like, what happened that was the most unforgettable thing?"

Wrong question.

Gaara winced slightly, albeit in went unnoticed by Lee. He slowly turned to face the speaker, and wondered if there would be a way to get out of answering this lovely question. He figured he could always lie, but he'd rather not do that to Lee, it'd just feel... It just wouldn't feel right, basically. "Lee, do I have to answer that?"

"I suppose you don't really _have_ to. But, I really do want to hear about it... But, I understand if you don't trust me enough to tell me something that personal. It's fine." Lee desperately tried to appear okay with that whole situation, but it was obvious he truly wasn't.

It was strange how Gaara just couldn't _not_ tell him anymore... "Fine. I'll tell you. But, I'll have to tell you the whole story." He inhaled deeply, getting ready to retell the story he had never told anyone, and exhaled just as deeply.

"My mother had died giving birth to me. And my father, being Kazekage, could never really look after me. So, I was left to be taken care of by my uncle Yashamaru. Yashamaru loved his sister, my mom, very much. He told me that he loved me and that he would always look after me because I was something left behind by his sister. Because I was something his sister loved.

"Father would always dote me with things, gifts upon gifts, and such forth. But, Yashamaru was the only one who really smile with me and made me happy. Yashamaru was basically my father. When everyone would call me monster and tell me to die and slam their doors in my faces, he would always calm me down and tell me, 'I love you'.

"Yashamaru told me that the reason the sand would always protect me was because it was a present left by mother. That because she loved me, the sand would make sure I was never injured. I wanted to know what an injury felt like, I was curious. But every time I was able to, the sand would protect me. And Yashamaru found me trying one night and he told me that I wouldn't want to do something like that. I told him my heart hurt, and that I wondered whether that was the kind of pain I would receive by bleeding. Yashamaru said physical wounds can always heal, but wounds on the heart could be there forever.

"And one day, when I was sitting on the ledge of our balcony, a man came up behind me and tried to kill me. The sand reacted accordingly, and whipped him back. He was thrust into the wall behind me, and I walked over to him, ready to unveil who this person was. But, then I notice something similar about him, and it made me hesitate for a second. When I ripped off his mask, though, I realized that this man trying to kill me was Yashamaru.

"I asked him why he did that and he said it was orders from my father. At first, I was relieved, because that meant he had no choice, but then he clarified that he had the opportunity to refuse the job, yet he still took it. He revealed to me that he truly hated me, all that time. He had always hated me for taking away his beloved sister. He told me my mother hated me, too, and that the only reason she gave birth to me was to curse our town. He had explosive tags attached to his chest, and when they completed their process, he was left to die, and the sand protected me."

Gaara closed his eyes briefly after telling that entire story in a monotone. He didn't want Lee to think he was all sentimental over that happening, but he should've known that by telling Lee this, things in their stable friendship were definitely going to change. With that thought in mind, he opened his eyes to view Lee, and see what his reaction to the story was.

The leaf-nin had a shocked expression on his face, eyes full of an unidentified emotion. His voice no longer held the happy-go-lucky tone it always did; however, it wasn't the serious tone he spoke in on some occasions, either. In a way, it was a sympathetic tone, but also a "I can't believe I just heard that" tone. "I... I'm so... Sorry, Gaara. I can't... Believe that happened. To you.." he stammered off, not knowing what to say in this situation, but know he was supposed to say something.

"I don't want your pity, Lee. Just drop the subject," the redhead replied in a slightly aggitated tone. He glared at the leaf-nin, eyes appearing more upset than angry.

"Alright, drop it. Gotcha!" Lee smiled a pearly white smile, and gave the other a semi-Good Guy pose. "So, Gaara, what's this about a present that I hear?"

"There is no present."

"Temari said there was."

"She was lying."

"No, I think _you_'re lying."

"Fine. Yes, I got a present for you. But, you can't open it until your birthday," Gaara announced, smirking at the other boy.

Lee laughed cheekily, "What time is it?"

"I don't know. . . Sometime after one maybe," the redhead replied, not really wanting to get up and check the clock.

"Well, then, it _is_ my birthday. And because I can't be with you tonight, I want to celebrate it with you right now. You okay with that, Gaara?" Lee smiled hopefully, his eyes giving away how badly he truly wanted to celebrate this day with his friend.

"Alright, I'll throw a little party with you, or whatever you want," he replied, facial expression stoic.

"But you're going to have to loosen up a little bit, okay?"

"Yeah, okay."

The redhead stepped away from his spot by the window and toward the kitchen. He gestured for the other to follow him, and Lee complied. Without looking back, Gaara walked into the kitchen, heading toward the refridgerator and opening the door. He peered inside, moving a few things around to see everything inside. Moments later, he pulled out a container of sake and closed the door. He placed the container on the counter, looking in the cupboards for two glasses. Once finding those, he put them beside the glass. Just as he was about to pour one glass, he heard his company's objections.

"I can't drink sake. . ." Lee stated after seeing the sake bottle.

"Why not? It'll 'loosen' us up," he spoke those words with a smirk.

"Well, then. . . You can drink sake, but I'm a horrible drunk. I attack things and I break things; I like to fight when I'm drunk. So, please, I'd rather not," he concluded.

"Alright, I'll get you something else." With that said, he poured himself a glass of sake, and then took the container back to the fridge and placed it inside the cooler. He looked around before pulling out some sort of drink Temari had made a few days ago. He kept the refridgerator door open as he poured Lee's cup, and then put it back in its original place. He walked over to the counter, where Lee was sipping at his drink to see how it tasted.

"You like it?" Gaara questioned, earning a happy nod in return as he continued to drink the beverage. He also took a drink of his own glass, gracing the strange sensations it gave him. "Well, since it's your birthday, cake's supposed to be eaten, right?" he smirked at the other. "Two choices. Temari baked a cake yesterday, so we can have pieces of that, or we can make a whole new one."

"Let's make our own, Gaara. It'd be so much... YOUTHIER!" he laughed happily, putting his glass down and moving it out of the way.

"Alright," Gaara replied without looking at Lee. He worked around the kitchen, grabbing the things he needed. He situated a large bowl in the middle of the counter, and placed the specified amount of most of the dry ingredients necessary in the bowl. The redhead measured the liquid ingredients in a measuring cup and poured them carefully into the bowl. "Lee, get the eggs," he said.

Lee did as he was told and got the eggs from the refridgerator and put them on the counter near the younger male. Said boy opened the package and cracked the eggs over the edge of the counter, breaking it over the mixed ingredients. He did that same process two more times. He looked over to the Green Beast of Konoha, egg in one hand, smile slightly tracing his lips, "Want to crack the last one?"

"Ooh! Yippee!" Lee chimed, scurrying over to the redhead and greatfully taking the egg out of his hand. He stood in front of the bowl, doing it exactly as he saw Gaara do the procedure. When he turned and saw Gaara looking smug, he figured he probably did the right thing. Although, Lee wasn't completely certain.

(A/N: I skipped a ton of steps for making a cake. Sorry. I'm lazy.)

Gaara lightly tapped Lee on the shoulder with a wooden spoon. "Lee, you can stir it." He watched as the ebony-haired ninja took the spoon and starting circulating it in the bowl. After a few moments of staring at the action, he walked to his drink and took the glass in his hand. He sipped at the alchoholic beverage, feeling the reaction his body was having to it. It wasn't much as he hadn't had to much, but he felt the cool liquid run down his throat and give him tingles in his stomach.

Minutes passed by and Gaara continued to drink his sake, unaware of the fact that Lee was still stirring. He put down his glass for a moment, seeing the kept-out ingredients and moving to put them away. Before he could do that; however, he saw a finger coming toward his face, only to wipe down his cheek. He felt the smooth batter roll down his cheek, as Lee was in front of him, smiling proudly.

Forgetting about the messy counter, he moved around the laughing Lee and dipped two fingers in the mixture, pulling them out only to be greeted with batter-covered apendages. He closed in on Lee and did a sneak attack from behind, wiping the chocolate mixture down from the mid-cheek to the neck. The leaf-nin whipped around at the unusual texture, laughing some more at the boy. Lee walked toward the bowl, appearing to be walking toward Gaara. The redhead backed up as Lee walked closer. Gaara ran into the counter edge soon enough, and the older boy seemed to place his hands on either sides of the other. The redhead gave him a curious look, smirk showing brilliantly, only to have his mouth covered with cake batter.

Gaara smiled and reached to the bowl a slight ways away from him, getting a whole hand-full. With Lee still nearby, he shoved his whole palm in the other's face, smugly watching the semi-liquid run down his round face. Really cornering Gaara this time, he put his hands on either side of the redhead, putting his face quite close to the other's. Their nose were almost touching, when Lee gripped the bowl and dumped it over Gaara's head. He laughed whole-heartedly when the hair matted together and the redhead's face was covered fully in batter.

He watched as Gaara wiped the mixture off of his eyelids, and out of his mouth, and away from his nose. He glared playfully at the leaf-nin. He took a big swipe from his own face and smeared it down Lee's. Lee also took whatever batter he could get off his face and wiped it down the younger male's neck. Gaara ran one finger through his coated hair and tapped Lee on the nose with the found liquid batter.

Lee found himself lucky enough to hear Gaara truly laugh.

It was weird, and probably something one wouldn't want to hear that often. It was a happy sounding noise, but so creatively Gaara. Lee couldn't help but love it.

Lifting his arm, the leaf-nin placed a mesy hand on the other's cheek, feeling the moving of the joint underneath his palm. Slowly, his laughter came to a hault and he was slightly confused. He wanted to question the other's actions, but then he felt an unusual sensation on his neck. He realized it was Lee, licking up the batter on the right side of his neck. He saw as the other pulled back, licking his lip and visibly swallowing the delicious mixture. Gaara leaned over and kissed the boy on the nose, the batter sticking to his lips. He pulled back and licked the chocolatey treat off his lips, smiling partially.

Konoha's Green Beast laughed lightly, eyes dancing with glee. Lee leaned in and captured the redhead's lips in a searing kiss. He kept the moving to a minimun, not feeling any reaction from Gaara. The moment he was about to pull away, however, he felt the other press back on his lips. Lee smiled into the kiss, opening his lips slowly and poking his tongue through. Surprisingly, he was greeted with another eager tongue. The two muscles danced a fiery dance of dominance, both owner's melting into the connection. Lee put his hands on the younger boy's hips and lifted the other up slowly. Getting the point, Gaara pushed himself onto the counter and wrapped his arms securely around the other's neck.

Lee's hands roamed over the other's shoulders and chest, feeling the texture of the boy's skin through the clothing. Their lips detached and the older boy's lips trailed down Gaara's face and onto his neck, lovingly kissing the skin he found. He found a patch of skin, running his tongue over the smooth texture and sucking and biting at the skin. Lee worked adoringly at the portion of the neck with eyes closed and hands gripping the other's hips.

For a while that continued, before Lee trailed back up to the mouth, happy to find a ready and waiting tongue. The two dancers once again performed a beautiful routine with each other. This sign of intimacy and infatuation did not end for quite some time.

It was a long while later when Gaara found himself coming to a clear vision from a weird state of mind. He slowly realized arms were wrapped around his waist and said arms belonged to Rock Lee. A warm blanket was also draped over him, and his back was against something different than a coach back. He wiggled around to become face to face with Lee. Oddly enough, Gaara found himself smiling at the cute image of Lee sleeping.

Carefully wiggling himself out of the position, Gaara got up to check the time. He frowned when he saw that it was probably time for Lee to leave. Before waking the sleeping boy, though, he shuffled to his room and searched around. Picking up a folded piece of paper, he walked back down to his guest.

Towering over the other, he tapped the boy in the face with his creased paper. Slowly, the other awakened from his sleep, and sat up with a yawn. After blinking his eyes open, he smiled at the redhead before him, "Gaara?"

The younger boy took a step away from Lee, speaking in a monotone voice, "It's time for you to leave, Lee."

The leaf-nin stood up with caution, nearing the other, "Okay. . . I guess I'll have to go then."

"Yes, the sooner the better. It's already around seven in the morning," Gaara explained, not looking the shinobi in the eye.

"Okay. . . I leave. You don't gotta rush me," Lee gave a nervous chuckle before he realized, "So, about that present. . . ?" He watched as the redhead walked to the door, and opened said object. Understanding the boy's gesture, he walked to the door, stepping over the threshold and out of the house.

"Here," Gaara handed him the folded note, "Don't open it right now," he ordered. He gave a small smile, "Happy Birthday, Lee," and shut the door.

Bewildered, Lee carefully unfolded the letter, and felt a creeping suspicion of something he'd rather not think about. Of course, it was probably just his mind making this up. He figured the card would just say "Happy Birthday, Gejimayu" or something. Nothing too personal, really.

"Rock Lee, I could fall in love with you. Happy Birthday."

Lee stared, amazed by the simple words written. Sure, it wasn't extravegant, but it was amazing and special coming from Gaara. He quickly folded the letter up and placed it in his pouch, turning around and opening the door without so much as a knock. He found Gaara cleaning up the kitchen a little bit, and pulled him into a embrace. One of his arms snaked under one of Gaara's and placed itself on the redhead's back with the other hand rested in the matted red hair. He felt hands timidly come up to return the pressure on his back.

The leaf-nin pulled back slightly to place a loving kiss on unsuspecting lips, trying to put as much care, adoration, and love into the kiss as possible. When he pulled away, he smiled whole-heartedly, "Me too," was all he said.

**End.**

Sorry it was not editted. D:  
**Review?**


End file.
